[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 45 (Tuesday, March 9, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10818-10820]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-4969]
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INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION
[Investigation No. 1205-7]
Proposed Modifications to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States
AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission.
ACTION: Notice of institution of investigation and request for public
comment.
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SUMMARY: On February 26, 2010, the Commission instituted Investigation
No. 1205-7, Proposed Modifications to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of
the United States, pursuant to section 1205 of the Omnibus Trade and
Competitiveness Act of 1988 (the 1988 Act). Section 1205 directs the
Commission to keep the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States
(HTS) under continuous review and to recommend to the President
modifications thereto, (1) when amendments to the international
Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System
(Harmonized System), and the Protocol thereto, are recommended by
[[Page 10819]]
the World Customs Organization (WCO) (formerly known as the Customs
Cooperation Council) for adoption; and/or (2) as other circumstances
warrant. The Commission's report will set forth the proposed changes to
the HTS that would be needed to maintain conformity between the HTS and
the international Harmonized System. The report will also include
appropriate explanatory information on the proposed changes. In
accordance with section 1206 of the 1988 Act, the President may
proclaim the tariff modifications recommended by the Commission,
following Congressional layover and consultation.
DATES: April 9, 2010: Publication of preliminary report on the USITC
Web site.
May 21, 2010: Deadline for public comments on preliminary report.
June 25, 2010: Submission of final report to the President.
ADDRESSES: All Commission offices are located in the United States
International Trade Commission Building, 500 E Street, SW., Washington,
DC. All written submissions should be addressed to the Secretary,
United States International Trade Commission, 500 E Street, SW.,
Washington, DC 20436. The public record for this collection of
proposals may be viewed on the Commission's electronic docket (EDIS) at
http://edis.usitc.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Beck, Director, Office of Tariff
Affairs and Trade Agreements (202-205-2603, fax 202-205-2616,
[email protected]). The media should contact Margaret O'Laughlin,
Office of External Affairs (202-205-1819,
[email protected]). Hearing impaired individuals may obtain
information on this matter by contacting the Commission's TDD terminal
at 202-205-1810. General information concerning the Commission may also
be obtained by accessing its Internet Web site at http://www.usitc.gov.
Persons with mobility impairments who will need special assistance in
gaining access to the Commission should contact the Office of the
Secretary at 202-205-2000.
Background: Section 1205(a) of the Omnibus Trade and
Competitiveness Act of 1988 (the 1988 Act) (19 U.S.C. 3005(a)) provides
that the Commission shall keep the HTS under continuous review and
periodically recommend to the President such modifications in the HTS
as the Commission considers necessary or appropriate to accomplish five
general objectives. Among these stated objectives, section 1205(a)(1)
of the 1988 Act directs the Commission to conform the Harmonized Tariff
Schedule with amendments made to the Harmonized System Convention, of
which the United States is a signatory. Section 1205(a)(2) directs the
Commission to promote the uniform application of the Harmonized System
Convention and particularly the Protocol thereto, which contains the
Harmonized System nomenclature structure and accompanying legal notes.
Subsections (b)-(d) of section 1205 set out procedures to be utilized
in formulating recommendations and the requirements that the Commission
must observe with respect to the HTS modifications it may recommend.
The proposed changes included in this investigation are set out in
a Recommendation promulgated by the World Customs Organization (WCO) on
June 26, 2009, in order to update and clarify the international
Harmonized System nomenclature. The Recommendation--the fourth in a
series--is part of the WCO's long-term program to review periodically
the HS nomenclature structure. In accordance with Article 16 of the
Harmonized System Convention, the WCO has recommended the adoption of
certain modifications to the Harmonized System nomenclature, which are
scheduled to become effective on January 1, 2012. The WCO
Recommendation of 26 June 2009 can be viewed on the Commission's Web
site: http://www.usitc.gov/tariff_affairs/modifications_hts.htm.
The Harmonized System nomenclature provides a uniform structural
basis for the customs tariffs and statistical nomenclatures of all
major trading countries of the world, including the United States. The
Harmonized System comprises the broadest principles of classification
and levels of categories in the HTS, that is, the General Rules of
Interpretation, Section and Chapter titles, Section and Chapter legal
notes, and heading and subheading texts to the 6-digit level of detail.
Additional U.S. notes, further subdivisions (8-digit subheadings and
10-digit statistical annotations) and statistical notes, as well as the
entirety of chapters 98 and 99 and several appendixes, are national
legal and statistical detail added for the administration of the U.S.
tariff and statistical programs, and are not part of the international
Harmonized System.
An up-to-date copy of the HTS, which incorporates the international
Harmonized System in its overall structure, can be found on the
Commission's Web site (http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/bychapter/index.htm). Hard copies and electronic copies of CD can be found at
many of the 1,400 Federal Depository Libraries located throughout the
United States and its territories; further information about these
locations can be found at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fdlp.html or by
contacting GPO Access at the Government Printing Office, telephone 866-
512-1800.
The Commission will prepare and make available a preliminary report
and a final report. The preliminary report will be forwarded to the
President via the United States Trade Representative on or about April
9, 2010. It will also be made available for public inspection (with the
exception of any confidential business information) through the
Commission's electronic docket (EDIS) and posted on the USITC Web site
(http://www.usitc.gov).
The preliminary report will include proposed HTS modifications to
conform the HTS to the WCO Recommendation of 26 June 2009. The public
is invited to submit any comments until May 21, 2010. To assist the
public in understanding the proposed changes and in developing
comments, the Commission will include, in the preliminary and the final
reports, a non-authoritative cross-reference table linking the proposed
tariff codes to corresponding current tariff codes. Persons using the
successive versions of this table should be aware that the cross-
references shown are subject to change during the course of preparing
for implementation of the January 2102 amendments to the HTS. U.S.
Customs and Border Protection has domestic legal authority for tariff
classification and may provide information, both during the course of
the investigation and after the Commission's final report is submitted,
that indicates different or additional tariff classifications of some
goods. Moreover, the WCO Secretariat will eventually issue its own
advisory cross-reference table between the 2007 HS and the 2012 HS. If
necessary, the Commission's report will provide an explanation for any
differences between the WCO's and the Commission's cross-reference
tables; such differences would typically result from differences
between WCO decisions and established U.S. customs classification of
goods.
The Commission's final report, incorporating any public comments
received, will be sent to the President (through USTR) on or about June
25, 2010. It will also be made available for public inspection (with
the exception of any confidential business information) through the
Commission's electronic docket (EDIS) and posted on the USITC Web site
(http://www.usitc.gov).
[[Page 10820]]
Following Congressional layover and consultation, the President may
proclaim the tariff modifications recommended, effective not before the
30th day after the date on which the text of the proclamation is
published in the Federal Register.
Written Submissions: No public hearing is planned, but interested
parties are invited to submit written comments, which should be
addressed to the Secretary and received no later than May 21, 2010.
Submissions should be marked to refer to ``Investigation No. 1205-7''.
All written submissions must conform with the provisions of section
201.8 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR
201.8). Section 201.8 requires that a signed original (or a copy so
designated) and fourteen (14) copies of each document be filed. In the
event that confidential treatment of a document is requested, at least
four (4) additional copies must be filed, in which the confidential
information must be deleted (see the following paragraph for further
information regarding confidential business information). The
Commission's rules authorize filing submissions with the Secretary by
facsimile or electronic means only to the extent permitted by section
201.8 of the rules (see Handbook for Electronic Filing Procedures,
http://www.usitc.gov/docket_services/documents/handbook_on_electronic_filing.pdf. Persons with questions regarding electronic
filing should contact the Secretary (202-205-2000).
Any submissions that contain confidential business information must
also conform with the requirements of section 201.6 of the Commission's
Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR 201.6). Section 201.6 of the
rules requires that the cover of the document and the individual pages
be clearly marked as to whether they are the ``confidential'' or ``non-
confidential'' version, and that the confidential business information
be clearly identified by means of brackets. All written submissions,
except for confidential business information, will be made available
for inspection by the public. Any confidential business information
that might be received in the comments may be made available to
Customs, Census, or the President during the examination of these
proposals. The Commission will not otherwise publish or release any
confidential business information received, nor release it to other
government agencies or other persons.
Issued: March 4, 2010.
By order of the Commission.
Marilyn R. Abbott,
Secretary to the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2010-4969 Filed 3-8-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7020-02-P